Most of the other performances were very good. The women soloists, however, were not in top form (although the women’s chorus was quite wonderful). Pizzetti’s music gained in lyricism and power from the first act to the second — no accident. The first act is about spiritual struggle; the second about acceptance. “I am not in danger,” sang Furlanetto’s Becket. “I am only near to death.”

The staging was satisfying — essentially a cathedral interior with no indulgent distractions.

It was disappointing that the otherwise informative program offered almost no information about Pizzetti or Eliot. Eliot is a famous figure, of course, but the story of how he came to write the stage play “Murder in the Cathedral” is worth telling. Pizzetti may be an obscure figure, but he led an eventful life and completed, among many other works, 16 operas. I’ve never heard of any of the remaining 15, but if they come to San Diego I’m interested.